Hatchery production of seed is required to support a growout aquaculture industry that can meet arising demand for oysters and other bivalves, like scallops, mussels, and clams

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the University of Rhode Island $800,000 on September 1, 2026, under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) to expand the Bivalve Hatchery Health Consortium nationwide and develop management tools to address larval crashes in bivalve hatcheries.

The recipient will collect samples and data through standardized collaborative approaches from at least 75 percent of U.S. bivalve hatcheries, applying comprehensive diagnostic test batteries to identify causes and environmental and husbandry factors associated with larval production failures. The work encompasses data mining of global and regional factors affecting larval production, hypothesis-driven assays to understand larval crash mechanisms, and development of early predictors and management tools for larval performance issues. The recipient will test tool efficacy in hatcheries representative of each geographic region, production practice, and targeted bivalve species (oysters, scallops, mussels, and clams), then disseminate findings broadly to industry.

The University of Rhode Island Research Office, located in Kingston, Rhode Island, is the recipient. Performance of the work occurs in Kingston, Rhode Island. The period of performance runs from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2029. The award is classified as a Project Grant.

Despite considerable measures aimed at the elimination of pathogens and toxins from hatcheries, disease remains a major impediment to reliable larval production. Bivalve hatcheries in the united stateshave been affected by increased larval crashes of unknown causes. This proposal builds on the work done by the bivalve hatchery health consortium (BHHC) in the mid- and north- atlantic regions of the united states, with the goal of helping hatcheries nationwide manage the negative impact of larval crashes on bivalve seed production. The objectives of this research are to: (1) expand the BHHC nationwide. Samples and data will be collected through a standardized, collaborative approach from productive and unproductive larval production runs from at least 75% of the hatcheries in the US to allow for data mining of both global and regional factors affecting larval production. A comprehensive battery of diagnostic tests will be applied to those samples; (2) identify causes and environmental and husbandry factors associated with larval crashes through a combination of complex data mining and hypothesis-drivenassays;(3) use this information to develop management tools, including early predictors of issues with larval performance; (4) test the efficacy of these tools in selected hatcheries representative of each geographical region, production practices, and targeted bivalve species and broadly share this knowledge with the industry. This research will lead to practical knowledge and management tools that will minimize the financial and labor costs associated with unproductive runs in bivalve hatcheries. Improved health management in bivalve hatcheries will help support the growth of the bivalve industry in the US by leading to more reliable supplies of seed for the grow-out aquaculture industry.